Stuck
by editor frog
Summary: Four agents, an SUV, and lots of snow equal quite the dilemma on a case in the Great Lakes...


**So I was thinking that, along with there never being a CM episode in Michigan, we've never seen these people deal with snow of any kind. Here's my take on what that might look like... :)**

**I'm trying a new take with voices--I'm hoping it's apparent who's speaking, especially in the first part. **

**Disclaimer: If I owned Criminal Minds, they'd be going to the Great Lakes and New England regions more often...**

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"It's not movin'."

"What do you mean, it's not moving?"

"Try it again, Morgan."

"I've _been_ trying, Hotch. We're stuck."

"Terrific."

"What if we pushed?"

The four agents looked at each other. Then they looked at their SUV.

Then they looked at each other again.

"Worth a try…"

"Okay. Hotch, Morgan, give me a hand?"

The three agents went out to the back of the vehicle and braced themselves against it, waiting for the right moment.

"Okay, Reid, floor it!"

The SUV roared to life; its current driver keeping the accelerator level with the floor. He could feel the back-and-forth motions of his colleagues shoving against the back bumper of the vehicle, trying in vain to free it from its current location.

"Hey, wait a minute!"

The rocking stops.

"What if I try reverse?"

The three agents conceded, moving over to the side to try and keep their toes out of the rising snow and the wheel tracks.

The driver threw the automatic shift into reverse and, once again, floored it. The tires spun wildly, but the SUV didn't move an inch. Looking at the rapidly falling snow, the driver took his foot off the pedal and sighed.

"It's no use. We're stuck."

"Of all the places…"

"Well, look at it this way—if we're stuck, the chances are good that our unsub is stuck too."

"Unless he has a secondary mode of transportation, like a snowmobile or a sled or even…"

"We get it, kid."

Buried on a two lane highway in the middle of a Michigan snowstorm, the four agents began contemplating what move to take next.

"Anyone getting cell service?"

"Nope."

"Not me."

"Mine's dead."

"_Both _of them, Morgan?"

"Yeah, _both_ of them."

"Maybe we should invest in CB radios...they have a better range and would not be subject to shadowing and bad cell reception…"

"Yeah, Reid, we'll get right on that."

The snow fell even harder, causing the agents to feel like they were trapped inside a gigantic snowglobe they couldn't escape. It was starting to get cold, and even though they'd packed for cold weather, no one expected near-subzero temperatures along with blinding snow.

"You think JJ and Prentiss have figured out something's wrong by now?"

"Man, I hope so."

"Reid, turn on the engine and run the heater for a few minutes—my feet are starting to freeze up."

"Do you still have feeling in them? It could be frostbite…"

"I'm fine, it's just cold, that's all."

The driver turned on the engine and set the heater to 'full blast.'

"There, that should help."

"Now all we can do is wait for someone to notice we haven't shown up yet…"

There was a chorus of muttered agreements and chattering of teeth.

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Jennifer "JJ" Jareau looked over at Emily Prentiss. They knew they would be the first ones to arrive at the station, but it had been well over three hours and there was still no sign of the rest of their teammates.

Something was definitely not right about this…

"You think they got stuck in that mess?" she asked, looking out at the blizzard that had sprung up between the airport and their location.

"Probably. And considering the cell service in Northern Michigan is spotty at best…"

JJ watched the snow as Prentiss placed a call.

"Office of all things knowable and unknowable, Oracle of Quantico speaking," came a bright and cheerful voice on the other end of the line.

"Hey, Garcia, it's Emily; could you try and locate Morgan's cell phone for me?"

"Sure thing. What, he get lost up in the Mitten State?"

"No one's seen him, or Reid or Hotch or Rossi in hours."

"Huh."

"Yeah."

"Really?"

"Garcia, what aren't you telling me?

"Take a look down the street."

"You're kidding, right…?"

Prentiss turned toward the window. The snow had finally subsided, leaving a thick white blanket all over the two-lane highway and surrounding little houses near the station. After a minute, she saw what Garcia was talking about.

"Has anyone told you you're wonderful?"

"Not in the last five minutes…"

"Thanks, Garcia."

"No problem." There was a click and a dial tone.

Prentiss waked outside. JJ, intrigued, followed her. Turning to look down the two-lane highway, she saw a sight that left her in a fit of giggles.

It was the sight of four well-trained, highly intelligent FBI profilers freezing in an SUV less than a quarter-mile from the station.

JJ turned to her colleague. "They'll never live this one down," she said.

Prentiss smiled. "Oh, you've got that right."


End file.
